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The “Hi Guy” rides by

This is the “Hi Guy.” He rides around Chicago saying “hi” to random strangers. I don’t really know anything more about him (or I choose not to know anything more about him – it’s often quite disappointing to learn the sagas of these real-life “characters,” I’ve found) other than to remember I first saw him, I think, in the late 1990s at a train station. Back then he simply carried that “Hi Guy” sign and wore a yellow happy-face shirt. I assumed he was partly a Forrest Gump fan, but that was just because of the shirt. He’s evolved quite a bit since then. “Hi Guy” is often bouncing around the city on weekdays in an apparently aimless manner. It makes me wonder if he’s fortunate enough not to have to work, though spreading cheer is equal parts enjoyment and effort, you know.Purchase a print of this photo

Hey, Tab. I did look up photos of him on Google Images – that was about the length of my research on this – and noticed a few of him out there on the lakefront. I always see him on weekdays. Never weekends.